Terpon is making VR webcams just for live streaming porn

A Swiss startup, Terpon SA, is making virtual reality webcams specifically for the adult entertainment industry. The cameras aren’t available for purchase, but customers can rent them for about $30 a month, a price that includes around the clock technical support. Terpon Chief Executive Jean-Claude Artonne said he wants to empower adult performers around the world to create immersive, premium content that they can sell to fans through any live streaming platform they choose.

While VR and 3-D content are burgeoning trends, a focus on live streaming is key, the CEO said. “Recorded content in the adult entertainment industry is dead or dying because of all the free content on the web. The part of the industry that is growing is livecam. But most visitors to these sites only consume what’s free there. If you give them 3-D content, it is something different that they will pay for. Especially if you have a VR headset already, you are committed to finding some new, fun experiences online.”

The company’s 3K resolution Hermes camera, and 4K resolution Artemis camera look, abstractly, like a face with big eyes pointing at the filmed subject. The idea behind the industrial design is to give performers a natural feeling about their fans’ gaze.

According to a company statement, “Terpon’s 3D-VR camera features stereoscopic synchronized modules with a 200-degree field of view. The camera streams 2D or 3D video, and is plug and play via USB so it works on PC or Mac.” The camera is compatible with any webcam platform that offers an API, or can be used with a performer’s own site or chat app.

Terpon CEO Jean-Claude Artonne.

Artonne explained why the company isn’t selling its cameras outright, but renting them instead. “Most cam girls are living in countries where making $300 to $500 a month is good revenue. It was very important to have something that can fit the budget for someone who wants to work in this kind of business in Romania, or Colombia, which are the largest providers of livecam adult entertainment by geography.” To make its offering known within the industry, this month, Terpon is giving away 1,000 of its beta-edition cameras to influential performers.

The company has raised an undisclosed amount of outside funding from an angel investor it did not have permission to name. Terpon intends to raise more seed or venture capital to fuel industrial production and marketing of its cameras, but Artonne acknowledges traditional investors may not be keen to get involved in adult entertainment.

That said, Artonne notes that lots of technologies that went mainstream first gained traction through adult entertainment, including VHS tapes, DVDs and webcams, more recently. Artonne said, “We don’t plan to limit ourselves to adult entertainment content creators long-term. But making a product that meets their needs is important. Having a company which is totally dedicated to this market will help us, in the future, to create something for the generalist market.”

Terpon is facing competition from a number of Chinese webcam makers targeting the adult entertainment industry, but also stalwart hardware companies like Nikon, Samsung and Lenovo, creating webcams for the virtual reality era.